Chapter Thirty-Five: Life Is Invaluable (Part Two)

Though we were never lacking in courage to face our foes head-on, to rush toward a monster capable of “annihilating” you in a matter of moments—that’s not courage, but true stupidity. I exchanged a glance with Krado, and together we made the only sensible choice: to turn tail and flee as swiftly as the wind.

Behind us, the Marquis Menerval’s guttural growl clung to our spines, and I kindly hoped that my minotaur companion might stumble and fall. Though we spoke different tongues, the gentle, soulful gaze in Krado’s large crystalline eyes made me suspect he was harboring the same ill wish toward me.

If Black Aurora were still alive, we’d have a fair chance of escaping this predicament. His long-range magical attacks allowed him to avoid Menerval’s terrifying melee strength; as long as we could keep the vampire marquis occupied, it would only be a matter of time before magic brought him down.

Unfortunately, the elven mage’s reckless bravado had cost him his life, leaving the rest of us in dire straits.

Many are only valued after they’re gone, remembered and mourned for their worth. Our complicated feelings toward Black Aurora—a mixture of longing and resentment—stemmed precisely from this. I wasn’t sure whether prolonged exposure to fire magic made one hot-headed, but judging from Black Aurora’s poor decisions, it seemed all too possible.

Longbow Sun also wielded some ranged holy spells, but compared to his close-combat magic, his distance attacks were little more than scratching an itch through a boot: fifteen seconds spent casting a spell, and it only knocked off thirteen points of health, even with a critical hit. Now I understood what Black Aurora meant by his repeated mention of “thirteen points”—if I’d been the one to commit such a shameful act, I would have died of embarrassment, but he continued unabashed, casting weak spells with persistence.

If we waited for him to whittle down this monstrous vampire, the weeds atop my grave would have grown into towering trees before he was finished!

“Longbow, stop attacking, save your mana for healing me!” Only upon hearing Long Triangle’s voice did I realize I’d missed someone in my count. Looking toward the sound, I saw a faint distortion in the dim light ahead, shaping into a large, transparent shadow. This shadow moved forward in a sneaky manner, blocking our path.

When Menerval transformed moments ago, the half-orc rogue’s usual slyness had sniffed out danger, prompting him to hide and successfully evade the marquis’s pursuit.

“You idiot, his attacks are too strong! I can’t heal you fast enough!” Longbow’s suggestion startled the dwarven priest, who protested loudly.

“Don’t measure my intelligence by your solid skull—I never said I’d fight him head-on! Just have your healing spell ready!” By now, Krado and I had dashed past Long Triangle’s flanks. The hefty half-orc, still cloaked in shadow, was about to face the charging vampire alone.

As Menerval barreled toward him, Long Triangle suddenly sidestepped, letting the beast pass, then leapt up and struck his spine with a warhammer.

This vile ambush succeeded. Like all foes struck by a half-orc rogue, Menerval immediately stopped in his tracks, dazed by the sudden blow and plunged into a temporary physical stupor.

The hammer only shaved seven points off Menerval’s health—barely a threat, even with his life bar nearly depleted. But this was merely the prelude to Long Triangle’s assault.

At the moment the vampire marquis staggered in his stunned state, Long Triangle brandished his “Corpse Venom Dagger,” plunging it deep into Menerval’s back.

With a sudden burst, a blood arrow worth one hundred and fifty-two points shot from the wound, rousing Menerval from his stupor. He turned, eager to exact vengeance on his attacker.

Long Triangle, having landed his blow, immediately bolted, his soft belly jiggling with each step, wailing, “Quick, heal me now!”

I couldn’t fathom his urgency, as his health bar had suffered no loss. As I pondered his panic, a sickly green “-22” floated above Menerval’s head, while a brutal “-44” flashed above Long Triangle.

We instantly understood what had transpired.

“Corpse Venom”—a sinister skill inherent to the dagger—inflicts ongoing damage to the enemy while dealing double harm to its wielder. When describing a fierce battle, we’d often say, “hurt the enemy by a thousand, lose eight hundred yourself,” but Corpse Venom was worse—it was “hurt the enemy by one hundred and twenty, kill yourself by two hundred and fifty.” When we first saw this skill, more a suicide than an attack, we’d laughed at its absurdity; but now, we witnessed its power firsthand.

Though each tick inflicted only twenty-some points of damage, the cumulative poison quickly took its toll. In mere ten seconds, Menerval’s health was truly depleted. Numbers representing his dwindling life flashed above him, their ghostly green hue radiating deadly toxicity.

Long Triangle was in even worse shape: with Longbow’s help, the healing light of the supreme god Darrimos poured over him like cheap oil lamps, one after another. Clutching handfuls of health potions, he gulped them painfully, nearly retching, all while dragging Menerval in circles around the life totem Krado had planted, seeking the minotaur ancestor’s blessing.

At last, the dagger’s venom reached its peak within Menerval; after the final “-20” floated by, the vampire marquis ceased his struggles, his wicked life finally at an end.

“…How…how could this be, these lowly maggots…” His face was twisted with unwillingness, eyes wide with fear and disbelief, as if he could see his life’s end from within this hall of death. Yet suddenly, a feverish, weak smile appeared: “…But…it’s too late…no one can stop…His Majesty Darenthil’s arrival…”

With those words, he collapsed, his massive body shrinking until he was no bigger than a normal man. His corpse, now mummified, with wrinkled skin, dried and hardened, and hair turned white, was barely recognizable.

Seeing it, I finally exhaled in relief. “It’s over. We finally brought him down!”

“Yes, it’s all over…” Longbow nodded.

“Nonsense! Nonsense! It’s not over at all! You’ve forgotten about me!” Long Triangle suddenly shouted, “Longbow, why the hell did you stop? Heal me!”

Though Menerval was dead, the Corpse Venom still ravaged the half-orc rogue’s body. “-48,” “-44” continued to float above his head, his health plummeting even faster than when the vampire was alive.

“There’s a little problem…” Longbow hesitated, then pointed shamefacedly at his empty blue mana bar. “…I’m out of mana…”

“Mana potion?” Long Triangle’s voice was desperate.

“I drank the last one just now…”

At that moment, Krado’s life totem reached its limit and collapsed with a thump. The blue aura vanished from the floor, and Long Triangle’s health began to drop even faster.

“Oshit! Are you all ganging up on me?” Long Triangle looked at the empty bottle in his hand, wanting to cry but unable.

“You’ve got five seconds left for your last words. Anything to share?” Longbow said, half-serious. He tried to look somber, but the twitching corners of his mouth betrayed him; he struggled to contain his schadenfreude, his expression a masterpiece.

“I think…” Long Triangle said solemnly, “…I might still…have a chance…”

No sooner had he finished than he dropped dead.

(Here, I want to mention a reader—Pure Black Night. It was a funny misunderstanding: unaware that this was Little String’s alternate account, he angrily accused me in the comments of stealing character names from ‘Starry Reflection.’ It was just a minor mix-up, easily laughed off.

What touched me was that, realizing his mistake, he returned and apologized in the comments. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen someone offer such a sincere apology online; this space seems to have become one where no one takes responsibility for their words or feels compelled to apologize for their mistakes. Even in real life, how many people nowadays can honestly and candidly admit their errors?

So I feel happy and grateful. To have such earnest, open-hearted readers is an honor for any writer.

That’s all!)